


Teach Me How to Love You

by Anotherrosebyanothername



Category: Much Ado About Nothing - Shakespeare
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Teachers, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-22
Updated: 2020-07-05
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:55:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24314662
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anotherrosebyanothername/pseuds/Anotherrosebyanothername
Summary: A Beatrice and Benedick teacher au
Relationships: Beatrice/Benedick (Much Ado About Nothing)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 26





	1. Prologue

The room was silent except for the sounds of Beatrice’s pages turning and the faint thumping of Ben’s heart that she could hear as she curled up at his side. He gently stroked her hair, and she could feel his warm breath on the top of her head.

They had been dating for six months, and as hesitant as Bea might be to admit it, she was pretty content. Content wasn’t even the word for it. Happy. She was happy.

They only met for the first time back in August. She was busy re-arranging her classroom where she was starting her third year as a history teacher at Messina High, when she heard a slight knock on the doorframe. It was a man she had never seen before saying sorry to bother her but is the building always this hot? Which led to his introduction as the new English teacher, Ben. Which meant she just had to ask what he was planning on teaching this year and oh yes that cabinet is ridiculously heavy let me help you move it and of course I’m helping you set up your classroom why wouldn’t I? And their discussion over the next few hours turned to a dinner invitation because he hasn’t been to Margaret’s Cafe yet? That’s an abomination. 

It turned out that they got along marvelously. Ben was happy to engage in long book discussions and they even initiated a book swap (He gave her Anna Karenina and she gave him Dracula). Their views on politics were similar and he was more than happy to listen to any rants she wanted to go on. She shared which students to watch out for and they swapped funny student stories and the weirdest homework excuses. When school started they ate together in the teacher’s lounge at lunch, and caught up with each other at the end of the day. They just fit.

And now they were dating and she was happier than she had been in a long time. 

“Bea, I have something to tell you.”

“Hmm?” she hummed without looking up from her book.

“Beatrice.” The urgency in his voice made her look up this time. She looked into his eyes, usually so soft and calm, but Ben actually looked...nervous. It was not an expression she saw on his face often, and he looked so cute that she couldn’t help it when her mouth softened into a smile. Ben cleared his throat.

“I--I have something I need to tell you. Bea I…” he trailed off, but she could tell what he was going to say next. And as much as she liked to see him flustered, she had enough confidence to take the reins on this conversation.

“I love you.”

That’s what Bea said. But what Ben said was, “I’ve taken a job in Thailand”

If they were standing, she might have physically stumbled backwards. As they were sitting on the bed, the most she could do was pull back from him abruptly. “I’m sorry, what?”

“I was offered a job at the international school in Bangkok and I accepted.”

“For how long?” she asked quietly.

“I don’t know. At least a year. But Bea, that doesn’t mean we can’t--”

“Stop.” She didn’t scream or shout the word, but it pierced through the air sharply. Ben immediately quit talking. She put a hand to her forehead. Her head was spinning. This was possibly the worst thing he possibly could have sprung on her. It was certainly the last thing she expected. She took a deep breath in and out. She looked up with him, she was sure with all the vulnerability she felt plastered right on her face, “why?”

He fidgeted under her clearly hurt expression. Good, let him be uncomfortable. “It’s just something I’ve always wanted to do. Travel the world. And now seems about a good of a time as any. I don’t have anything keeping me here--”

“Get out,” Bea interrupted him for a second time in two minutes.

“Beatrice, I’m sorry I--”

“GET OUT!”

He quickly gathered his jacket and exited the apartment as swiftly as possible, only once sparing a glance back at her. As soon as the door was shut, she collapsed on the bed. She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes. She had been vulnerable for him. She had literally told him she loved him, and at the same time, he admitted that she meant nothing to him. Tears rolled down her face as she allowed herself to feel the pain of what had just happened.

When Bea finally lifted her head, she let out a sardonic laugh. She was in his apartment. She had just forced him out of his own apartment. Knowing that he had complied made her feel a little spark of vindictiveness, and also another feeling way down in the pit of her stomach that she didn’t want to think about. 

She swiped at her cheeks with the backs of her hands, took a deep breath, and stood up. Slowly, deliberately, she collected the items she had in his apartment. Her book. Her purse. A jumper she left there last week. Her favorite mug that had been stored in his cupboard. She paused at the view of her copy of Sense and Sensibility sitting on his nightstand with a bookmark stuck in the middle. She left it.

She knew she would still have to see him at school. But they only had a month left. This time of year was normally so crazy anyway. She would avoid interaction. She would get to school early and leave late. She would eat lunch in her classroom. She would circumvent Benedick’s movements at all possible costs. And when the year was through, she would never have to see him again.


	2. Chapter 1: Three Years Later

Shhk. Shhk. Shhk. 

Bea rifled through the crowded clothing racks. The cheap Macy’s hangers made a truly God-awful sound as they scraped across the metal and clanged into one another. 

She was out with Hero for their annual back to school shopping. In honor of the first day of school, Bea treated herself to one entirely new outfit each year. They were still a few weeks out at this point, but they would have to dive back into work next week and wouldn’t have much free time after that.

“What do you think of this one?” Hero asked her, holding a blue sundress to her chest.

“Don’t you already own one just like that?”

Hero looked at it inquisitively for a second. “Yeah, I guess I do,” but kept the dress to try on anyway. 

A minute later, Hero said, “hey Bea?” in a tone that was attempting casual but failing miserably. 

“Yeah?” she responded; actually achieving the laid-back tone Hero had probably been going for.

“I really need to talk to you. Maybe we could do drinks at your place tonight?”

“Of course.” 

Bea wasn’t really sure what she needed to talk about, but figured Hero’s parents must be on her again. They were always pestering her about marriage, even though she was barely twenty-five. Bea always liked to point out that she was three years older, unmarried, and doing just fine.

“We can always do dinner too,” she offered. “If you are interested in my master pasta-making skills.”

“Yeah, that sounds really nice,” Hero smiled at her, still slightly distant.

Two and a half hours, and four stores later, they piled their bags in Bea’s car feeling rightly successful. Bea found a killer maroon blazer for forty percent off and a new pair of dark wash jeans to go with. Hero found a cute floral blouse and a light pink skirt to match.

It was late enough they decided it was silly for Hero to go home just to come back to Bea’s later. So instead they made a pit-stop at the store to get ingredients for dinner.

After Bea’s absolutely delicious spaghetti carbonara and equally delicious bread courtesy of the supermarket bakery, they sat in Bea’s kitchen, sipping their wine. Hero still hadn’t breached her topic of conversation. Bea was wondering what could be bothering her, when she took a deep breath and set her wine down.

“So, I ran into Donovan the other day.”

“Oh?” Bea raised her eyebrows at the mention of the chemistry teacher at Messina.

“Yeah, and of course we chatted about school and he mentioned something that I thought you might want to know.”

“Don’t tell me: his football team is finally gonna be good this year. You know he says that every year and it’s never true.”

Hero looked at her seriously, but only when the words came out of her mouth did Bea understand why. “He said that Ben is coming back.”

___________________________________

It was five days after Hero had dropped that absolute bomb on her, and it was her first day going into school.

Bea was, of course, grateful Hero had said something. It was better to be prepared for something like this than to be caught unawares. 

How do you really prepare to see your ex that literally moved continents so he could break up with you?

Despite doing her best to ignore it, there was a small tangle of knots in the pit of her stomach. Her thoughts constantly wandered, and she barely registered her podcast as she got ready that morning. And yeah, maybe she looked a little nicer than she normally would have. Would she usually have put on makeup to work in the classroom all day? Probably not. But that didn’t have to mean anything.

To be fair, it did mean something. But that something was mostly spite. If she was going to see him, she was sure as hell going to make sure he knew how great she was doing. Goddamn it, she was doing amazing and he deserved to know it.

When she finally managed to get to school, she was relieved to see that the classroom next to hers was still dark. 

She unlocked her door, stepped inside, and flipped the lightswitch.

Beatrice took a deep breath. There’s something magical for her about the start of the school year. It’s exciting. It’s a fresh start. It’s a new set of kids to get to know and inspire.

And it was time to get to work.

She turned the fan on and opened the windows because it was hot as fuck, sat down at her desk, and started prepping.

__________________________________

Two hours and one large mug of coffee later, Bea decidedly needed to go to the bathroom. When she poked her head out the door she noted that the classroom next door was still empty.

As she made her way down the tiled halls she thought about what it would look like in three weeks. Packed to the gills with kids. Someone blasting music from a portable speaker that would almost certainly be confiscated by the end of the day. Ultimately a group of girls would stand right in front of the bathroom door and everyone would have to walk around them. High schoolers were simultaneously some of the smartest and dumbest people. And she loved teaching them.

When she rounded the corner she immediately knew something was wrong. Standing in the doorway to Donovan’s room, his back to her, was Benedick. 

She made a beeline for the bathroom, inwardly flinching at how loud her shoes sounded in the empty hallway. But she didn’t make it to the door before she heard a, “Bea?”

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and turned around slowly. There he was. Six feet away from her.

They stood face to face. Beatrice was amazed how quickly the anger inside her managed to boil. Even three years later, she was bitter.

The tension between them was palpable. Bea stared him down. She certainly wasn’t going to say anything. But evidently he wasn’t going to say anything either. After a minute of Ben utterly failing to spit any words out, she curtly spun on her heel and walked away as coldly as possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I really am just writing as I go so chapter updates may be...inconsistent to say the least.

**Author's Note:**

> Come obsess about them with me on tumblr where I'm mydearldydisdain!


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